Стюарт Вудс - Foul Play

“You have. What do you think?”

“I think I’ll take back what I said about you not being sneaky enough,” Stone replied.

“Of course, all your bills will be paid upon presentation,” Shep said.

“That’s reassuring.”

“The City of New York is taking care of me,” Dino said. “But you realize I can’t stay here past the weekend. I have a day job, down at One Police Plaza.”

“Of course.”

“How long do you wish me to stay?” Stone asked.

“As long as you like, or as short a time. I think that, after the weekend, we’ll be settled in nicely with Mike’s people to ward off evildoers.”

“Let’s look ahead a little,” Stone said, “and suppose that whoever these people are, they eventually see through our ruse and come after you.”

“Well,” Shep said, “in that case we may have to take stronger measures.”

Rod spoke up, “I’d welcome the opportunity to shoot a couple of them,” he said. “I’ve got a very nice deer rifle with a big scope on it.”

“I don’t think a shoot-out is your best move,” Stone said. “That sort of thing attracts law enforcement, and you can’t buy all the locals and the Massachusetts State Police.”

“I’ve left plenty of room in my backyard cemetery,” Rod said.

“Rod, please put that out of your mind.”

“All right, then, you’re in charge, Stone. What’s our next move?”

Dino turned toward Stone. “I want to hear this, too.”

“In that case, we will have to discourage them.”

“Is that all?” Dino asked. “Just shoo them away?” He made shooing motions with his hands. “How?”

“I’m working on it,” Stone said.

Dino laughed. “That means he doesn’t have a clue.”

Rod Troutman stood up. “Perhaps I could show you a couple of things.”

“Of course,” Stone said, rising in concert with Dino.

“If someone should enter the house without permission,” Rod said, walking to a bookcase across the room, “I can take refuge here.” He pulled a book — Tom Sawyer , from a leather-bound collection of Mark Twain titles — and the entire width of the case, about thirty inches, swung away from him. He ushered them into a bedroom, and the case silently swung shut behind him. Inside were a king-sized bed, a Chesterfield sofa, and a pair of leather reclining chairs. Rod picked up a remote control from a table between them and pressed a button. A very large flat-screen TV rose from a bookcase along the wall and switched on to CNN.

“Entertainment provided for,” Rod said, “and there’s a shotgun under the bed and a pistol in the bedside drawer. An exit to the outside and two windows are concealed from exterior view.” He led the way back into the library and closed the bookcase with another TV remote control next to his chair.

Rod sat back down. “Oh, and there are two turrets at the top of the house, one providing an excellent field of fire toward the road, and another providing the same toward the sea.”

“Very well thought out,” Stone said.

“Part of the renovation just completed,” Shep said, “is armored glass in all the windows. They won’t stop a bazooka, but small arms fire can’t breach them. There are electric blinds in each, too, so we won’t emit light at night.”

“I think this house would turn out to be a very unpleasant surprise to your Russian buyers,” Stone said.

“I agree,” Dino pitched in.

“Still, your best defense is invisibility. If they can’t find you, they can’t shoot at you. Are there any family members back in Lenox?”

“We are the only two Troutmans extant,” Rod said. “I’m thinking of burning down the old place. It’s a white elephant, anyway. Nobody in his right mind would buy it, but the land would bring a good price.”

“Not just yet,” Stone said. “Maybe the Russians will burn it down for you. It’s the sort of thing they do.”

“And they’re welcome to it. I must say, though, Stone, that these people are not going to go away, unless they take some casualties.”

“That’s an astute observation, Rod, but let’s let them start it.”

Shep laughed. “I thought they already had,” he said, “and I’ve got the lumps to prove it.”

“Still, it’s too early to get into a war with these people — and when you do, you’ll want to start at the top. They don’t care how many soldiers they waste. They’ll probably even hide the bodies for you. But it’s important to the leaders to feel safe. When they no longer feel that, they’ll fade into the forest with the other gnomes.”

“Well,” Rod said, “I’m told that patience is a virtue, but I’ve never been all that virtuous. And I’d rather go down while returning fire than be picked off while taking a stroll on the beach.”

“An understandable feeling,” Stone said, “but we’ll all be better off if we can just get them to go away.”

“What are you going to do for yourself, Stone?” Shep asked. “You’ve said you’ll go back to New York. They know where to find you, don’t they?”

“They do, but I have encountered these people in the past. And, while I can’t say that I won, I can say that they felt the pain and didn’t like it. Suffice it to say, they don’t consider me low-hanging fruit.”

“And he’s got me watching his back,” Dino said. “They know that I’m in a position to make big trouble for them.”

“I forgot about the benevolence of the NYPD,” Stone said. “My apologies, Dino.”

“Accepted.”

They had lunch, then Stone went to his room and read for a couple of hours. He was called for dinner at eight. They were on coffee when the team leader of the security detail entered the dining room. “Mr. Barrington,” he said, “our Citation M2 will be on the ground in half an hour.”

“Then Dino and I had better go and pack,” Stone said. “And call my driver.” They did so. Then Stone and Dino said their goodbyes and got into the car in the garage. They drove to the main road without lights.

“How do you do that?” Stone asked. “The lights of all modern cars come on at dark, or when the engine’s running.”

“We have a switch installed that overrides the lighting, inside and out,” the driver said.

“I want one of those.”

“Mention it to Mike Freeman.”

The car switched on its lights at the road. And at the airport, drove onto the ramp. Everything was transferred to the light jet, and the engines started immediately. The pilot already had his clearance, so they were off. Once airborne, Teterboro was half an hour away. When they landed, Fred was waiting with the Bentley, and they dropped Dino off at home.

“The house lights are all off, as you directed, sir,” Fred said.

“Good. I don’t want to be seen as being at home until after the weekend.”

The following morning, Stone called Brooke Alley.

“Good morning.”

“Are you still in New York?” Stone asked.

“Yes, are you?”

“Yes, what a happy coincidence. May I give you dinner at my house this evening?”

“You may. Should I bring my toothbrush?”

“Oh, yes.”

“Shall I pick up dinner on the way?”

“What do you have in mind?”

“Chinese? From the Evergreen?”

“Sold. You choose the dishes. I’ll send my car for you at, say, six-thirty?”

“Done. I’ll have the food delivered here.”

“See you then.”

They both hung up.

Brooke arrived on schedule, and they spread out the food in his study, and they dined on the floor by the fire.

“I called Shep at the Carlyle, looking for you,” she said. “They told me he has left the country.”

“That’s true, sort of,” Stone replied.